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Adults with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) may be more vulnerable to memory and thinking problems later in life, according to the results of a new study.
Experts have recommended regular “monitoring” of older people living with the condition after discovering a “markedly” increased risk of cognitive impairment.
The survey explored diagnosis rates among people with ADHD as well as associated genetic risk factors linked to the condition.
The academics analyzed medical data from 187,341 American adults aged 50 or older.
About 1.6 percent of participants, representing 3,026 people, had a formal diagnosis of ADHD.
After tracking participants’ health records for an average of seven years, researchers found that 6.7 percent of people with ADHD were diagnosed with cognitive impairment, compared to 3.4 percent without the condition.
Led by a team from the University of Pittsburgh in the US, the study also assessed participants’ ADHD polygenic risk scores, which analyze genetics to assess the likelihood of an individual developing the condition.
They found that people with genetic links to the disease were also more likely to be diagnosed with cognitive impairment.
The team of academics concluded that ADHD was associated with a four times higher risk of cognitive impairment.
“ADHD was associated with a significantly increased risk of cognitive impairment in late life,” the authors wrote in the journal Jama Psychiatry.
They added: “These findings support ADHD as a relevant factor in cognitive health later in life and call for clinical guidelines recommending cognitive monitoring in adults with ADHD, while recognizing that the mechanisms and causal nature of this association remain to be established. »
It comes as a major study into ADHD, autism and mental health in the UK is due to be published.
The study, launched in December last year, looked at diagnosis rates and support offered to people from mental health, ADHD and autism services.
An interim report from the review team, chaired by Professor Peter Fonagy, found there could be “multiple factors” behind an increase in diagnosis rates of autism and ADHD, including better recognition of these conditions, increasing distress among young people, “institutional incentives and pressures within existing service pathways”.
Speaking ahead of the final report, Professor Fonagy insisted “it’s harder to be young now”, telling the BBC there was a real increase in mental health problems among young people and saying he would call for improved support.
He said the report “rejects the idea of a snowflake generation” and that the NHS is “not fit for purpose” as too many young people remain on waiting lists for long periods for mental health support.
Elsewhere, a report published by the Children’s Commissioner in June found that more than a million children – around one in ten – in England were referred to, waiting for or treated by mental health services in the 12 months to March 2025.
And in August, the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman warned that people with ADHD and autism are “falling through the cracks” as services are “under significant pressure”.
Ombudsman Paula Sussex said children and adults with ADHD and autism face “long waiting times, variations in access and fragmented care” as demand for care exceeds capacity.
Gn Health
